Akrasia
by Tsukiko hoshino
Summary: Humans got it wrong more often than not, but when it came to the story of Persephone and Hades they were closer to the truth then they could ever know. Even as the King of the Underworld with all the time one could imagine at his disposal Sasori still lacked patience even when it came to falling in love and He never was one to deny himself what he wanted.
1. Chapter 1

**Akrasia**

* * *

In what was viewed with equal turns amusement and consternation, it was widely known among the Gods that human's seldom got anything right when it came to their lives. They took small facts or occurrences and blew them out of proportion or fabricated things entirely.

Minato or Zues for instance had never cheated on his wife, he had only one son and daughter and no brothers by blood. Gods after all, were not always born but sometimes created. He had ascended to his position by war, married Kushina soon after and been inducted into the status by her hands.

Occasionally though the mortals did get a thing or two right.

Demeter, or when referred to by her more personal name; Tsunade, enjoyed traveling the land rather than being cooped up on the mount where everything was perfectly boring. In between sowing the earth with seeds and blessing harvests she spent her time gambling, spreading rather salacious rumors about her compatriots just for her own amusement and occasionally performing good deeds-when the rare mood struck her.

It was one such time that'd she'd been traveling with her rather select entourage of a pig and a sloe-eyed woman that she came across a village struck by plague.

"What a shame." Shizune, or Eubuleus as she was titled gave a sigh as they passed through the streets where the dead had been left piled. It was a mystery why anyone thought she was a man-although she supposed it could be because they simply didn't expect a woman to be capable of good counsel. 'Well explain that to Athena.' she sniffed and decided not to put too much stock in the ignorance of humans after centuries of dealing with it.

"That bastard's halls are no doubt full." Tsunade was torn between a smirk and sneer. She had never forgotten the Lord of Death's refusal to let the soul of her mortal lover go. She hadn't cared a whit for the balance even in her youth. With the sudden influx of dead he'd find himself rather busy and she hoped he was miserable every minute of it. 'But probably not.' Rumor was that he liked collecting.

The smell was almost unbearable to her senses and there was nothing to do for the poor souls but give them their ferry fare. Partly out of spite for the dark god and partly out of pity for the dead Tsunade gave Shizune half the coins she carried with her in an unspoken order to place them on the eyes of the deceased. The other half she took herself and with her perfumed shawl pressed over her nose she went from hut to hut of the small farming village to lay her own coins.

She'd won at gambling for the first time in an age but it wasn't like she was hurting for riches with the way that she got devotional offerings.

There in the third hut she entered were two dead adults, a man and a woman. One with hair the color of dark, ruddy primroses and the other that reflected the ochre hues of marigolds. They were already foul smelling when she placed the coins within their mouths, she'd rose to leave when she heard a hoarse cough from another room. Crossing the dirt floors, she threw back the colorful curtain partitioning one room from the other and knelt over the rumpled bedding. "Still alive I see."

Whoever they were they were clearly tenacious. "Let's have a look." pulling back the woolen covers she sighed at the sight of a girl no more than 3 by human standards, her cheeks were flushed dark red with fever and her chest rumbled with every struggling breath. Something tugged at her from long ago, a memory from when Dan had died and she had gone to the Fates for some type of reassurance.

The old Crones voice echoed in her head; A daughter You'll have, of blood but not of your womb. Eyes like fresh spring shoots and hair like eastern blossoms. Tsunade wouldn't have thought much of it, if that girl hadn't looked at her with half opened, very green eyes as she fought for air.

Even alone she was still desperately struggling to live and her hair was distinctly the right shade. The fates had said something else, but drunk on grief and Jiraiya's spirits she never could recall the rest of it. Of their own accord her hands reached out to stroke the child's cheeks, some part of her delighting when the touch was snuggled into. It felt like a snare closing around her heart.

'That's the thing about fate.' Tsunade thought, feeling something warm in her chest begin to take root. 'For all our power and longevity we can never defy it.' All things came at a price in the end.

"Shizune!" She bellowed ordering the willowy goddess to her side. The girl was about as close to death as one could come without slipping over the edge and to save her-no, to keep her, she would have to become something more than human.

Quicker than any human, but not as fast as other gods Shizune was at her back. "Oh, this one is alive!"

Tsunade unwound the chalice that dangled from the dark green cord that cinched her waist. "Fill it half way with ambrosia." she said, holding it up over her head.

Shizune's confusion lasted for only a moment, "You want a drink at a time like thi-oh...wait you don't mean to...surely there are other ways!" turning a human into a god was supposed to be done only after coming to a majority vote among the upper echelons.

"No time for that, besides this is fate at work." Tsunade held the cup out expectantly, fingers wiggling around it impatiently. She'd been denied one life long ago, she wouldn't risk this one by asking for permission even if she had the luxury of time.

Only Shizune's sigh preceded the scent of every fruit man had ever known and some they didn't filling the room, the smell of it overpowering even the rot that pervaded the air. With the weight of the cup in her hand steadily growing heavier as the other woman poured, Tsunade turned her teeth to her other wrist.

The old crones's words still echoed through her head. 'Of my blood, but not of my womb.' The ichor in her veins spilled thickly into the cup, golden-green and nacreous as it glowed even in the dim lighting. When it was full the wound mended by her will. Pulling the child to her lap she placed the cup against her lips, the first mouthful was choked on in part due to its otherworldly taste. The rest of it went down smoothly and her breathing evened as the unhealthy sheen that graced her face began to fade.

By ever passing moment her skin seemed brighter and smoother despite the grime that came with sweat and sickness for days on end. Her eyelashes fluttered and too bright green eyes opened wider, more lucid than the last as the magic worked its way through her. "H-hello." her voice was hoarse with disuse and the word was slurred by sleep and the usual speech impediment young children possessed.

Shizune made a noise behind that Tsunade was familiar with, it was the sound one made when they found something adorable and knew in that moment that the other woman would have no more complaints about what had been done.

"What's your name?" Tsunade asked, knowing that she couldn't forever go on calling her Girl and if she didn't ask soon the little one was sure to fall asleep, already her eyes were drooping closed.

The child sighed, head pillowed by Tsunade's arms. "Sakura." She couldn't quite understand it but she felt so much better all of a sudden. The pain that had come with every breath was gone. The woman holding her smelled nice, like cut apples and the fresh green grasses she liked to lay in on sunny days. Even her tongue felt pleasant, the taste of something she couldn't define other than sweet lingering upon it.

'Where's mommy?" Sakura couldn't remember the last time she had seen her. She frowned because when she thought harder she also could not remember when her father had last been to see her either. Tears gathered, something felt bad in a place deeper than her bones all of a sudden.

Trying to explain the intricacies of death to what was formerly a human child was not an endeavor Tsunade was sure she was up to just yet, but Shizune-as she often did covered her blind side.

"I'm sorry to say but they got quite sick and they...well they went far away."

The sleepiness that she had felt was forgotten as she began to panic. "They have to come back!" They hadn't even said goodbye. The tears rolled down her face.

"They can't." Tsunade sighed, tucking the child against her chest to rock her gently."And you cannot go to where they are...I'm sorry but that's the way of things. I'll take care of you." She hoped that would be enough someday.

"We will." Shizune amended, Tonton oinking at her heels.

They waited until Sakura's wailing had ceased, until she had lost the energy to keep awake after her cries and rapid breaths had worn her out to leave, seeking to spare her the sight of her decaying parents and village that more closely resembled an open graveyard.

By that time the sun was descending the sky and given that the one driving it was a loud mouthed brat there was little doubt that word would soon be out that the Goddess of Grain was toting around a child of curious origin.

'Well, let them talk.' Tsunade thought with a huff, she couldn't care less.

It was weeks later, when Sakura was cleaned and dressed in better clothing than she had ever owned, much less seen before meeting Shizune and Tsunade that she was loaded onto a chariot for the first time in her life, arms wound tightly around the woman's neck as she fretted. She'd never ridden on before but Shizune said it flew of all things.

"It's not so bad." Tsunade laughed, holding her tightly as Shizune took the reins. They probably could have walked but their current choice of transportation was by far faster. "And there will be lots of things to see and eat when you get there."

What was probably the most interesting thing to Sakura was that it wasn't a horse heading them but Tonton. She wasn't sure how they expected a pig to pull the chariot, she wasn't all that big even if she was the smartest farm animal she had ever met. At 3 it was very hard to understand the strange turn of events her life had suddenly taken but in the way most children did she simply took it all at face value.

She didn't look when they began to move, choosing instead to hide her face in the curve of Tsunade's neck. Sakura peeked only once to get a glimpse of clouds breezing by, closer than she had ever seen before. They felt cool and damp against her skin. The ride wasn't long, but her thoughts wandered. She missed her parents; the familiarity, the sound of their voices and even the way that they smelled.

Tsunade and Shizune were kind but Sakura had a very basic understanding of death. That people simply went to sleep and the part that made them who they were went away to another realm. She was even more confused about the designation between humans and gods.

Tsunade hardly looked any different than anyone else she'd ever met besides better dressed, cleaner and with a faint glow about her. 'But I have that too now.' She'd only noticed it a few days ago when she woke in the middle of the night and saw the faint silvery glow pulsing beneath her skin.

"Sakura." Tsunade's voice called, pulling her from her pondering. "We're here."

Here was unlike any place she'd ever seen, it was better than the city Tsunade had taken her to after everything. There were buildings built into the high peaks of a mountainside, bright and shining white with golden roofs. Waterfalls fell from steep crevices to the world below. The same thick clouds that they had cut through on their way up curled about the mountainsides.

"Where's this?" Sakura questioned when the blonde set her on her sandaled feet. She'd never worn those before meeting them and still found them strange.

"The heavenly threshold." Shizune explained, unhitching the pig for a well earned respite. "Or just Olympus if you prefer the more mundane term."

Tsunade had begun the long stroll up the paved paths lined with lush greenery, her hand locked with the child's. "Its boring is what it is."

"Well, I'd be happy to help alleviate that for you." A tall man with thick, bushy white hair and red robes stepped onto the path before them.

"Oh no!" Shizune cried and preemptively covered the child's ears for the trouble that was sure to come.

"Don't you have some maenads to fuck, Jiraiya?" Tsunade scowled.

"Well that was just rude." he huffed. "And you ought to be careful with that mouth now that you're a mommy." He waggled his brows as he peered over his shoulder at the thoroughly confused child. "Awful small even for a human…" he paused taking in the glow. "Or former human...You know you caused a bit of a fuss with this."

Deciding that it was safe to uncover Sakura's ears Shizine grumbled under her breath about impressionable ears and did so.

"All I did was what fate decreed." Tsunade replied haughtily and stepped around him, tugging Sakura along.

"Well fate is fate, for better or worse." Jiraiya intoned at their heels.

They came to the largest of the pavillions where there was a courtyard, A trellis twined with wisteria with a long table laden with food and drink lay below it. "Wait here with Shizune for a bit, okay?" Tsunade patted Sakura on the head.

"But why?" The girl with pink hair wondered, craning her neck to look up at the blonde woman. She wasn't sure why they had come to this place to begin with. Shizune had told her told her she would be meeting lots of new faces but so far she had only met one.

Jiraiya held back a chuckle, despite the glare it garnered him from the busty goddess. " Because we're all nosey." That was truly the only reason for their meeting as far as he was concerned. The thing about living nigh forever is that one became insatiably interested when a rare new thing or event occured.

"That is the gist of it." Tsunade admitted, hand ruffling through the girl's hair. "Eat what you want and don't let anyone give you trouble." It went unspoken between Shizune and herself that the other woman would keep an eye on her as she turned and left for the gleaming building behind them.

"You!" Mei howled on sight of her. "That was a dirty rumour you spread!" her perfect lips were pursed into a pout. "I haven't even been married once! And I certainly would not sleep with that snake." She couldn't think of a single person who liked the god of war and sedition.

"That one wasn't even me!" The goddess of grain and harvest fire back, although she honestly couldn't remember if she had spread that rumour or not. "Besides as the goddess of love and beauty isn't it a bit embarrassing that you're unengaged? Better the mortals think otherwise lest they doubt your prowess." She grinned dropping into her designated seat.

Jiraiya sighed melodramatically. "No need to fight, you're both beautiful." He'd taken his own place in between the two and offered his amphora to Tsunade which she took after a scrutinizing moment.

"Hmph." Mei crossed her arms, stewing over how she would get the other woman back at some point down the road.

Minato was already seated with his wife at the highest dias. "I see we're missing Hades again." he wasn't even sure of the last time they'd seen him in their halls.

Gods, like human politicians had their power blocks and factions. Poseidon the God of Storms and Earthquakes was seated with his own wife, an empty seat between them and Orochimaru. "I wouldn't have expected him to show." Nagato intoned.

"You know how Master Sasori is." Hephestues complained, flipping his blonde hair. "He's not interested in this sort of stuff." or rather he wasn't interested in showing up. Sasori was in fact a gossip monger but he hated leaving his halls to fetch it. Since most, if not all of Deidara's materials came from the underworld they'd long ago struck up a partnership of sorts. 'And I'm stuck sitting next to this snake...I oughta skip too.' he slouched lower.

"We're also missing the youngest three, I guess Apollo, Artemis and Athena are still in time out" Obito the Herald teased. "Probably because they almost destroyed the building when Sasuke learned the mortals think he's a woman." that was a rumour he'd personally spread, that the moon was driven by a lady.

Naruto had laughed so hard the building shook and the two had a massive fight that Karin had interjected herself into.

"Naruto said you picked up a human girl?" Minato turned to the actual order of business rather than address the drama of the last time they'd all been under one roof.

Swallowing the wine, Tsunade nodded her head. "Yes. although she's hardly human anymore."

"My my, isn't that supposed to be put to a vote?" Orochimaru intoned, slitted eyes aglow with something like glee. "How insurectious of you Tsunade."

"Shove off." Tsunade snarled, lounging deeper into her seat. "I didn't have time for that and besides there was a prophecy at work and you all know how that goes." Fighting against the cogs of fate never worked and in the end the measures one used to avoid it often hastened it along.

There were more questions bandied about on whether or not Sakura had presented any powers yet, which she hadn't other than her sudden boom in health. It wasn't unnatural for latent talents to take time to present in those who hadn't been born power and she wasn't concerned. 'Even if she's perfectly ordinary other than eternal life it wouldn't matter to me at all.'

"Well, if that's all there is to this, I think I'd like to meet her." Kushina said when the complaints and questions had finally come to an end from the more boisterous members.

Nagato and Konan had remained silent for the most part as there had been no change in the status quo with the new addition.

The council came to a close and they filed into the courtyard, many of them prepared to depart.

Sakura, in the time that Tsunade had been gone no longer had only Shizune and Tonton for company. The younger gods and Goddesses that resided on the mountain top had caught wind of her and came calling.

"I told you she was cute." Naruto grinned, he only looked about as old as a ten year old boy but his years were many more.

"Was your hair always that color, or did it come with the ambrosia?" His sister wondered.

Sasuke, ever the calm one simply rolled his eyes. "Can't you both see you're being annoying?" the girl was curled into Shizune's lap with wide eyes, the cake she'd been eating slipping from her hands.

"Oh! Look how small she is!" It had been ages since she'd seen someone of that size.

Deidara had no interest in kids of any sort, his life was his art and his hands were itching to craft something so he left as quickly as he could, forgoing prolonged goodbyes. When he later relayed the information to Sasori, the god seemed just as indifferent.

"She doesn't even have a title, much less any apparent talents." The God of Death had said, disinterest in his lazy composure seen reflected through the mirror.

The craftor was tinkering with something or another."For now at least. You never know, things could change un." If anyone were to ask his preferences when it came to his craftsmanship then it would be those of clay or stone but truly anything he made was peerless. Although he supposed half of that was due to the high quality materials from the underworld.

"Nothing ever changes." Sasori disagreed and then the mirror blackened before it returned to being just a normal reflective surface.

The years passed and Sakura grew a bit quickly for an immortal, likely due to her human origins. She'd quickly caught up to the ages of the younger gods as she lost count of the passing years even as she became somewhat wiser in the workings of the universe.

Looking at the age of 15 she'd still not presented any particular skills that set her apart and the humans had taken to calling her simply as Kore. 'The Maiden, how boring.' Sakura thought. 'Mother doesn't seem to mind but what if I can never do anything?' Not to mention there was that one muse who was constantly twittering about it.

'This is why I hate coming up here.' Sakura pouted as she wandered about the limited wilds of Gods were celebrating the end of a century in a week long festival and everyone was expected. Including the ones she had never seen before. The Titans who had once been imprisoned were apparently given leave to attend-or at least some of them and there were whispers that the elusive King of the Underworld would make an appearance.

Tsunade was currently in a long winded dice game against her own sire Hashirama while Shizune attempted to play the voice of reason when it came to their betting but Jiraiya was egging them on and there was very little hope they would stop anytime soon.

Sakura could have spent her time in the company of Naruto and the others but that muse she had a particular dislike of was hanging around. 'Comedy? The only comedic thing about her is her face.' Sakura preferred the fields and forests of the world below to keeping the company of those she disliked.

She would much rather pick flowers with Ino and Hinata than pretending to smile as she was judged and found lacking. It was with that thought that she was seeking her solitude far from the festivities. On Olympus one could always find little alcoves and hideaways. Mei had once told her they were for lovers' trysts although the meaning had been lost on her at the time.

Still, she knew of one such place that overlooked a grotto teaming with honeysuckle and gardenias. The little pavilion was built on top of the water and reached by crossing a series of stones. 'And it's perfect for a midday nap.' or it would have been. "Oh."

Sakura's plans were dashed, there was already an occupant inside. There was a man lounging on the same plush cushions she'd been intending to sleep on. He was dressed in varying shades of black, his only ornamentation was the golden scorpion at his shoulder. The other was bare. It was so lifelike there was little doubt as to who had created it.

He was paler than her and the glow beneath his skin was strong under the shade. From his exposed arms she could see the wiry muscles that made up his frame. It wasn't as if she was a stranger to male physiques considering Naruto pranced around with a perpetually bare chest but she still blushed just a touch, mostly because the man was decidedly lovely to look at with thick lashes and messy hair that curled about his face just so.

"Girl, are you going to keep staring?" A lone eye of honey and amber opened to gaze at her.

"H-huh?" Sakura stuttered. "Wait, no! I wasn't!" she protested, waving her arms about nervously. "I've just never seen you before is all." He was only older looking than her by a bit, but that didn't mean much when it came to immortals. He could be older than her by a hundred years or by more than she could count. 'Which is very high.' In the end there was no guessing who he was. Although if asked she might had said the God of Sleep, she'd yet to meet them either.

Sasori didn't know her which meant she probably belonged to someone's entourage. 'Probably looking for some place to have an affair.' he thought, eyes sliding closed. She'd just have to find another spot.

Feeling effectively dismissed with her plan all ruined Sakura heaved a sigh and looked around. "Damn it, now I've got to figure out some other place to lay low." and this was literally the only spot she knew of.

Curiosity made him ask, "Why does a girl like you need to hide?"

"I'm not hiding!" Sakura's lips twisted into a frown. 'Okay maybe I am but that muse never lets up and she gives me a headache.' Unfortunately the last time Kin had made her so angry she'd tried punching her only to break a few knuckles in the process. They'd healed right after but it had still been mortifying to fail. "It's just loud and there are too many people, most of them drunk. Even Pan is here and you know how he is." the cretin was more brazen than Jiraiya who was mostly all talk and eyeballs.

"If you're quiet you can stay." It was simply that he understood the desire to avoid the crowd that he allowed it. 'But if she makes a nuisance of herself she might find herself rolling down the mountainside.'

Sakura's face brightened instantly. "Really? Thank you!" she all but threw herself onto the cushions opposite him, splayed on her stomach as she pillowed her cheek against her arms. The faint frown on his lips when she cheered kept her from saying more. Instead she dropped into a peaceful silence, content to listen to the larks and the faint sound of someone strumming a lyre.

He took a good look at her while she slipped into her daydreams. Eyes like the green gems that clung to the caverns of his real and unfettered, waist length hair that fanned about her shoulders and torso. She was prettier than a nymph or a dryad but she lacked the adornments of even a minor goddess.

She had none of the trinkets or baubles that Deidara was so often busy with, though there was a small band of braided flowers wrapped around her wrist most likely kept fresh by magic. 'Though they'll likely shrivel in due time.' The most luxurious thing she wore was the green cloth embroidered with golden flowers that wrapped her waist, the length of it mingling with her white skirts.

Perhaps what Sasori knew best of her was that she was young, at least by the standards of immortality since she clearly had no idea who he was. If she did she probably would have left the moment she came across him. 'Unless she's like that other nymph.' The one whose name he could never quite recall. 'Unlikely unless falling asleep has suddenly become a seduction tactic in the time I've been below.'

It wasn't long until she was well and truly sleeping that he decided he'd better show his face before Deidara or someone worse sought him out for something or other.

Later in the evening after the sun had set and the lamps and lanterns had all been lit he caught sight of her again among the younger of their number. She was scowling at the Muse of Comedies and while he appreciated art he'd never been one for her sphere of influence finding her humor to be low brow.

Deidara stopped in the middle of his complaints that simple pottery had become quite boring and that he was thinking about something more explosive in nature to follow where Sasori's attention had fled. "Oh thats Sakura." he said as if it explained everything.

The name sounded familiar to him but before he could inquire the girl's voice rose higher in pitch.

"I've had enough of this from you!" and her unsandaled foot stomped into the ground. He would have found it petulant and childish if it weren't for the great quake that followed. The ground cracked and split, gapping open several feet in width. One of the columns supporting a mansion went askew and looked dangerously to knocking down another.

Kin's leg sunk into the chasm as wild grasses and flowers began to creep over her, growing voraciously as Sakura watched on in horror. The world had gone utterly silent and still except for the blooming plants and Kin's shrieking.

Sakura pressed trembling hands to her lips. 'Did I do that?' she hadn't meant to.

"Oh well that was just divine." Deidara mumbled breathlessly. Destruction and creation all at once was his aesthetic.

Sasori couldn't disagree. She'd been pretty before but even in her shock she was beautiful, eyes wide and face turning red.

It was the sound of raucous laughter that truly broke the hush the world had fallen into. "Oh Tsunade, your girl was simply a late bloomer!" Hashirama of the southern pillar had been so surprised by the sudden display he'd thrown the dice right into his brother's face. "She even takes after us in affinity."

"How destructive." Mei tsked. "I bet even the mortals felt that." on the other hand the display had garnered the girl quite a bit of male attention. 'And from some rather unlikely suspects.' her keen eye did not miss a thing and even Hades was staring. While it was true she could inspire romantic feelings in humans it was much harder to influence those of her own calibur. 'but my hands are clean of this.' for now at least.

Minato could be seen wincing at the damages from afar.

"Perhaps rather than Kore they ought to call her Persephone for the destruction she could bring." Karin mumbled half jokingly, not knowing that the secondary name would soon gain popularity.

"I uh...didn't mean to do that." Sakura squeaked and wondered if she should help Kin out of the hole she was stuck in or not. The vegetation had finally stopped growing but the muse was still well wrapped within it.

After the shock had passed Tsunade took stock of the situation. Of course she was proud to see her daughter come into her own power but there was something deeply unsettling about all the attention she had suddenly garnered. Before that moment Sakura had barely existed for most of the Pantheon.

What truly horrified her was what Jiraiya said next, "Won't be long until the marriage proposals start coming in."

Of course she hadn't been blind to the fact that Sakura was no longer a little girl but she was also still very much her child. ' and marriage? For every happy one of those among the gods there 10 more unhappy ones fraught with infidelity or cold tolerance after desire has waned.' and then there was the problem of heartbreak that came with falling in love with humans.

No, no, no. In her opinion Sakura was better off staying permanently unattached and free to do whatever she pleased, unbothered by messy entanglements.

'Oh dear.' Shizune fretted, hands wringing as she saw the process of thought play out over her companions face. It was the look that always preceded trouble of some sort.

It was obvious by Hashirama's statement who Sakura belonged to now. "Deidara," Sasori began tonelessly, "You said she was boring." he supposed this was what he got for relying on him for information

Deidara blinked at the statement "What? No. I said she didn't seem like much and you know she was like…" he gestured low to the ground "This big. She really grew like a weed." To be honest he hadn't taken much notice of her before himself.

'A weed is not what I would use to describe her.' Sasori thought.

Currently Sakura was being cuddled by the sun charioteer, praises being heaped upon her. "We should get married." Naruto said not for the first time since he met her.

Except that it suddenly sounded so much more ominous to Tsunade then it used to."I quit." she abandoned the game, dropping what she owed without preamble and separated the two. "We're going to bed." hopefully by morning the giant crack would be fixed and everything would be forgotten.

"But I'm not tired." Sakura mumbled even as she was dragged off.

Originally he'd planned to attend only the first day but considering how entertaining the first day had turned out Sasori reevaluated his plans and decided to stay a little longer.

The second day came and despite Tsunade's attempts to corral her daughter, Sakura had managed to give her the slip during some discussion the woman had been pulled into by Mei. If Sakura were a bit more suspicious she would have sworn the Goddess of Beauty had winked at her but it was a bit hard to tell when only one eye was ever visible.

The sun was just rising, which meant Naruto was busy with his own duties and if he wasn't around then Sasuke typically made himself scarce. She did manage to find Karin for a bit but she'd been a bit busy plotting revenge on some human who proclaimed she could weave better than the Goddess of Wisdom and Handicraft.

"I'm going to turn her into a spider." Karin seethed, her temper inherited from her mother. She had not been born from Minato's head despite the rumours.

Sakura never understood how fragile the egos of God's could be even though she had spent more of her life as an immortal than not. "She only said she was better than you." Even with all her power and wits Karin still found herself thrown into a frenzy over something so small. "Why don't you just prove that she's wrong in a contest?"

Karin's eyes seemed to glow even brighter. "Yes! And then I'll turn her into a spider. Want to come with?"

Sakura hissed from behind her teeth. "Tempting but I'll pass."

"One of these days there will be someone you want to smite and I'll be the one judging." Karin fluffed her hair as she prepared to depart.

"Doubtful." Sakura couldn't imagine such an event ever happening, she hadn't even meant to hurt Kin...much at least. 'I mean turning someone into a spider or a snake-haired monster is way worse than just punching someone.' Or terrifying them with plants.

Karin was gone soon after and she found herself wandering about looking for something else to spend her time on besides drinking or feasting because she would certainly not be partaking in the less...decent activities that were enjoyed by the less scrupulous characters. 'Well to each their own.' she thought.

"No."

It took her a moment to place the voice but when she rounded the corner the speaker was recognized immediately. It was hard to forget a peerless face like his. 'Well the murderous look is new.' and it was solely aimed at some poor naiad.

A sad fact of life for Nymphs was that they had rather tragic lives more often than not. They had a tendency to be loved by the wrong immortal or to love the wrong one. 'And this looks like a case of the latter.' Since he had been kind to her the other day Sakura decided to repay the favor and sidled up to his side. "Is there a problem here?" her arms slid through his, watching as the Nymph's face shifted from longing to fury.

"Who are you?" The look was almost enough to make Sakura cringe.

"Someone who could stomp you into a plant," Sakura pressed her cheek against warm flesh, savoring the scent of cloves and perfumed incense. "So off with you." she waved her hand, hoping the bluff would take because she really had no intention of doing so. It did, the nymph retreated with a few furtive backward glances as if expecting someone to call her back.

"I didn't need help." Sasori stared at the crown of her pink head. "Yesterday, today...I'm starting to think you enjoy getting into trouble."

Sakura scoffed. "Just the opposite really, I just thought I would repay the favor for yesterday." She let his arm go wondering if it would be rude to ask outright who he was.

"It was nothing." Because letting her share his space that day had been nothing of consequence.

She shrugged. "Then this was nothing too." and set about on her way. Or she would have if he hadn't caught her by the wrist.

"Where are you headed?" Sasori questioned, noting that she still lacked any footwear. Apparently she had a thing against shoes.

She wasn't headed anywhere which she said truthfully. "What do you have in mind?" In the back of her mind Sakura realized she probably shouldn't go wandering off with a stranger. 'That's how you get abducted.' she shuddered. "And who are you by the way?"

Maybe it was because he liked the guileless way that she looked at him without knowing who he was that he replied with "Hiruko." Rather than his real name or title.

The days passed like that, Sakura sneaking off and inadvertently meeting him, or rather thinking that she had met him accidentally. It had begun that way at the start but he found himself making excuses to run into her but always in lone company.

He wasn't ashamed of who he was. He took pride in the orderly way that he managed his kingdom, that his numbers would always outspan those of the living. He was a necessary guardian to the balance that kept the universe running smoothly, as he preferred.

Warriors and poets, the rich and the poor alike passed into his domain. Even those of the greatest intellect could not escape his grasp, each one came to him in the end. 'And since humans die in droves every day there is something new to hear.' He probably knew when a war was on the horizon before anyone else did.

For all his riches and his knowledge, the prisoners he kept and the denizens he collected with every passing moment there was something he was realizing that he lacked in the Underworld; Companionship and not of the superficial sort. 'That doesn't mean just anyone will do though.' Quality was more important than quantity.

It was over a series of Petteia sessions that had lasted well into noon on the last day of festivities that he came to a conclusion. [1]

Sakura had captured five of his eight pieces but was left with only two of her own in the process. There were very few people that could beat him at the game, much less come so close. He was steadily enthralled by her skills that seemed to grow with every consecutive game. It felt like she was reading his moves before he made them. "You've done well." he admitted after pinning the last of her pieces to the corner of the board.

"I still lost...for the third time in a row." She was pouting, cheeks puffed in annoyance. 'I thought for sure I had him this time.'

"You get better every round." Sasori watched as she began resetting her side of the game, his hand reached out to envelope her wrist. "Enough for now. Today's the last day you know." His thumb stroked over silken flesh, watching as color bloomed in her cheeks. "You haven't asked once what I preside over."

It had become a game of sorts her guessing and him denying, Sakura had started with Morpheus to his amusement-afterall death and sleep were rather closely entwined. Her last guess had been Phobus to which he'd laughed and said he didn't enjoy dismembering himself for pleasure.

"Hiruko, it's no fun if you just tell me."

Sasori was getting sick of hearing that name from her lips rather than his own.

Sakura hadn't told anyone she was meeting with him. Ever since she'd stomped the ground open her mother and half the people she knew had been acting oddly. Mei kept giving her mysterious, mischievous smiles. 'And Kushina gave me that talk about acceptable bride prices-apparently property is far better than coin.' of course she had also said that about cattle saying they provided continuous gains.

Naruto was being especially ardent and Deidara of all people had spoken to her for the first time in her life. 'He even offered to make me a hairpin without being asked.' The whole week had been rather bizarre, the most calming thing had been her present companion.

The one who was still holding her wrist and staring at her like it was the most normal thing in the world. It wasn't lost on Sakura that technically her meet ups with him had been a bit...indecent even by the loose moral standards her kind were often able to get away with. Proper, unmarried girls her age were not supposed to be meeting with men alone as she'd been doing all week.

'This is probably the most wicked thing I've ever done.' She realized with a start but did not try to pry herself away. There was a certain thrill that came with knowing she was being rather rebellious. When he looked at her with low lashes over sly eyes as he moved a piece on the board, her insides twisted strangely.

He said something that she hadn't quite heard, only knowing because she'd been focused on his lips. "Hm?" Sakura blinked and focused on somewhere more proper.

Normally Sasori would have scowled at having to repeat himself but for her he would make an exception. "If you don't ask now you might not get a chance. I depart tonight."

"Oh." The sky was already darkening which meant he'd be leaving very soon. "I'll have to guess the next time we meet. There is the harvest festival towards the end of the year held in Mother's honor." that one Sakura expected she would be attending.

He avoided that assembly simply for the fact that Tsunade hated him. 'Still holding a grudge for that time no doubt.' normally he could appreciate the spiteful nature since it was one he shared at times but in his opinion she was being ridiculous about the whole thing. Sasori couldn't or rather refused to let just anyone leave the Underworld. It would have set an awful precedent.

He was tempted to attend, if only for her but Sasori would make no promises in that regard.

Sakura's breath caught when she heard her name being called not far off from their hiding place. It was her mother's voice but his hand was sliding from her wrist, thumb trailing against the palm of her hand in a way that made her shiver. She took a good look at his face one last time, envying how composed he always was.

Her teeth sunk into her bottom lip nervously before she made a swift decision, the fact that she wouldn't have to face the repercussions of it until much later made Sakura braver than she would normally be. It was the barest press of her lips against the corner of his mouth lasting only a fraction of a moment, a simple chaste thing that made her heart flutter. She fled then, refusing to look at his face.

That very action sealed her fate. What he needed wasn't just a companion 'A wife.' Sasori decided it in that moment and made no move to chase her, lost in making his plans.

It was sometime later that Deidara got some rather odd requests from his supplier and contentious friend. "You don't have enough hair for these pins, un." and he didn't wear delicate little bracelets and anklets. Or girdles for tiny waists. 'Disturbing imagery.' He shuddered.

Sasori had also been very specific about the materials and motifs to be used. Rubies, dark hued amethysts or emeralds to be accented with obsidian or diamonds. The pieces were to mimic flora for the most part, although some were meant to reflect Sasori's own imagery of scorpions. 'If it were just one piece I'd say he had a lover but this is more like a treasury!' Deidara would be busy for a while with all the work.

"Then it's obviously not for me." There were secrets in Sasori's eyes if Deidara read them right and a smirk on his lips.

"Who in Hades managed to catch your eye, un?" Deidara could hardly think of a trousseau that rivaled the one he was tasked with. "Don't tell me it's Aphrodite? You know she'd complain endlessly down there." Judging by the faint look of disgust Sasori gave him he knew he'd chosen wrong.

"If you swear by Styx to keep silent I'll tell you." Otherwise Deidara would go on guessing forever, supplying even more ludicrous options.

Curiosity got the best of him and Deidara found himself swearing by the sacred waters to tell no one.

"I'm planning on taking a wife." and when he said taking he meant it rather literally. "Sakura, to be exact."

Deidara spilled the ore he'd been carrying all over the floor. "How? Tsunade hates you!" that woman would never allow such a union. 'She practically threw me over a table when I even talked to Sakura.'

"Better to ask forgiveness than permission." There was something faintly impish about the statement coming from the man in the reflective surface.

There was very little Tsunade could do to Sasori in the end. Taking a bride by conquest was common practice and the marriage ceremony he had planned was more primordial and binding than the feasts and pompous ceremonies his kind had taken to practicing. The cut over his chest rent by his own hand still stung as a dark reminder of it.

It would take time for that fruit to grow, something to wait for even if he hated it. The soil of his home made growing things slow and arduous. Impossible without magic. Having an almost endless supply of time didn't mean patience was forthcoming in the least.

So while humans didn't have every little detail correct they were _right_ that Hades staged an abduction.

* * *

Akrasia, meaning ones lapse of self control -looking at Sasori-  
Me bastardizing greek mythos worse than Disney ever did: this is fine…The idea that the gods just run around spreading slanderous rumors that take on lives of their own amuses me okay?

[1] petteia was an ancient board game. It ended when one person collected all the pieces or made their opponents incapable of moving. Not unlike chess.

If you go back and read Awful edges I was toying around with comparing Sasori and Sakura to Hades and Persephone at the very start lmao. the painting on the wall was originally written as Rembrandt's Rape of Persephone.

I don't intend for this story to be particularly long, 3-5 chapters at most.  
So a quick rundown of roles;

Jiraiya- Dionysus  
Tsunade-Demeter  
Kushina-Hera  
Minato-Zeus  
Naruto-Apollo  
Sasuke- Artemis  
Athena-Karin  
Aphrodite- Mei  
Poseidon-Nagato  
Amphitrite- Konan  
Hephaestus- Deidara  
Aries- Orochimaru. (Basically all the deities in classical greek mythology hated Aries...except for Aphrodite who slept with him for some reason lmao.)  
Hashirama- Krios, Titan of the southern pillar  
Obito- Hermes


	2. Chapter 2

**Akrasia**

* * *

There was no harvest festival for Sakura that year or the ones that followed, Tsunade had said that until she learned to control her powers it was best to stay in seclusion and on the practical side of things Sakura could understand that decision. If her emotions were particularly passionate one way or the other they tended to translate into physical results. Joy or delight and the world around her burst into life, trees that shouldn't have flowers grew them, where she stepped small blossoms popped open.

The real trouble came from anger or anxiety-fissures would form as the ground quaked due to the grasping vines pushing their way through the earth and although several planting seasons had passed she still couldn't seem to target what they reached for. That was probably why Ino was currently side stepping a rather grabby little patch of greenery. 'Still, I don't see why I can't leave this place at all.' She'd become much better at controlling herself over the years.

The part of her that was ruled by emotion said something very different. Normally Sakura would be allowed to travel alongside her mother and Shizune but ever since returning from she'd been more or less grounded. 'It certainly feels like a punishment.' Or that could have been her guilty concious at play.

"There is no way that she knows so stop that!" Ino did not find playing a game of tug-of-war with the end of her dress and Sakura's vines to be enjoyable in the least. 'Though I suppose it's better than being whipped by one.' as improved as Sakura's control was, there was one subject that never failed to shake it so it was easy to guess where her thoughts had wandered. "You played a board game and kissed a man on the cheek. It's not like you did something that would make a temple prostitute blush."

"Ino!" Hinata sputtered from her place at the banks of the river, hands thrown over her face. Although in her opinion the actual events were bawdy enough without the colorful commentary.

"Oh please, you think just being looked at by a man is enough of a reason to turn into a puddle." Ino waved a hand dismissively at the other oceanid. "The real issue here is that she doesn't know who he is."

Sakura didn't think that made things sound any better to Hinata's ears. "I know his name!" She interjected, feeling slightly insulted. "I just don't know his other name."

It was probably the millionth time they'd been over things and the conversation almost always ended the same way. "Not that it matters since I am never going to see him again." It was a little upsetting that she'd missed him several times over and she hoped Hiruko didn't think badly of her-if he'd shown up at all. Unbidden the melancholic sigh escaped her.

Sakura missed the knowing looks her companions shared.

"I don't suppose you'd like to practice your needle work?" Hinata offered, though she knew what the answer would be.

Waggling her fingers with a frown, Sakura shook her head "I'd rather not, I've had about enough with pricking my fingers open over the last few days." She'd yet to master the art of embroidery unlike Karin. "But I think I'd like to replace the flowers in my tent." The heliotropes and daffodils were beginning to wilt after being picked weeks ago.

"The same ones as before? Or something different?" Hinata spied some Morning Glories-they could easily be twisted into garlands and hung.

With the shrug of her shoulders Sakura ambled further from the water. "Something different, I'll know it when I see it." A child, that was exactly how she was being treated between being left behind like she was in some sort of time out and the spells that ensured she couldn't leave even if she wanted too. It was beyond her current ability to unravel or break through the barrier Tsunade had constructed. 'I am more than old enough to be married and if that's the case I don't see why I can't travel on my own.'

Although she probably wouldn't want to travel by herself even if she could. It would be rather lonely without a companion of some sort. 'Its not like I'm going to cause a catastrophe, I have things under control.' more or less, usually. Sakura's steps were quick and agitated, putting distance between her and her more leisurely strolling companions who had stopped to converse in low voices. By the time they looked up her pace had put her far from sight.

The valley was a beautiful place though Sakura hesitated to call it home no matter how long she'd been in residence. The winds were mild, the warmth of the sun was at her back. High flying birds with trilling songs filled the air as she moved but her eyes were on the ground having caught sight of something glittering in the dark of a gully she was passing by. 'What in Tartarus…' She knew every inch of the area and the last time she had passed by there had been no mysterious shiny things days before.

Curiosity piqued she slid down the ravine, soft moss below cushioning her bare feet. The trench she found herself in went on for some ways and was rather wide, around her the walls loomed large and only a few shafts of sunlight found their way into the cool shade. The thing that had been shining in the dark was not lit by any one of them but seemed to have a light all its own.

Sakura had never seen such a flower before and she was somewhat of an expert on the subject, the one she was now face to face with was no bigger than the palm of her hand and shaped like a camellia blossom. Transparent petals and as dark a red as the wine Jiraiya created. When she went to touch them they were hard and smooth, lacking the subtle striations she would have expected. 'This isn't organic.' and the fact that it was a construct was made more clear when she pulled it from the ground and the stem was gold.

If she had been a little less naive Sakura would have been wary about messing with it but even as she questioned where it had come from and why it was in such a place she noticed more of them glittering further ahead in different hues, ranging from red to crystalline white. By the time her arms were laden with several of them she felt it, the shifting of stone and earth as loose pebbles skittered down the walls and across the ground.

Shadows grew longer and seemed thicker, swallowing up the already sparse light, the sense that something was fell over her and when she turned to climb out the way that she had come Sakura saw that the very end of the hollow was blacker than night, as though there was a massive hole in the hillside that wasn't there before.

For a moment Sakura thought that the pounding going through her body was her heart speeding but the notion was dismissed when she saw the heads of the coursing beasts rearing out of the darkness. They moved like horses, they were shaped like them too but even in that moment of horror she could tell they weren't made of anything fleshlike and they were pulling a chariot behind them. Her eyes darted to the figure in black robes at the reins.

Divinity meant the closest she could come to death was being torn to pieces, a state remedied by being put back together again but that durability didn't stave off pain or the chances of a permanent crippling but even in her earliest days as a goddess Sakura had been wary of chariots and it had only grown worse when she'd been pitched out the back of Naruto's during an ill advised joy-ride. Falling several hundred feet through the sky had completely ruined them for her.

'I need to move.' She knew it but her limbs were hesitant to comply. The baubles she'd been so distracted by tumbled from her hands, chiming as they fell and like the breaking of a spell Sakura found herself moving with sudden swiftness, grasping a handful of roots and hoisting herself over the was nearly out, all except one damnable ankle and that was all it took. A hand closed over it and yanked her down even as she kicked out against the grip.

The thing about chariots was that they did not have a lot of spare room for the rider or their companion and the current one was no exception. Sakura was trapped between the driver and the rails, the sharply turning horses threatened to throw her over the side if not for her current captors arm restraining her by the waist.

They were covered completely in black cloth that dripped down their head. 'How can they see anything, much less steer?' Sakura glanced from them for a moment, trying to figure out an escape that wouldn't hurt her too badly but in doing so she realized the turn had been. Because the driver aimed to go back the way that they came-into the dark, gaping chasm.

There was only one place they could possibly be headed and her stomach plummeted, hands shooting out to grab a fistful of the black material. "Let me off!" But they didn't say a word even a Sakura pulled, even as the daylight faded and the opening closed behind them like a wound knit shut. They traveled so quick that in what felt like a moment the only light she had was from her own shining.

Fists full of cloth and panic setting in Sakura tugged violently and the robe gave way, hitting the rushing wind with a sharp slap. "Y-you?" She choked over the word, thoughts stumbling at the sight of him. His hair was a mess between the wind and being rubbed the wrong way but Hiruko looked the same as she last saw him.

Recalling the major and minor deities of the underworld was pointless, there was really only one who would do what he'd done without fear of reprisal. "Hades?"

Infernal mischief gleamed back at her through his eyes in affirmative and Sakura felt like a complete idiot, which in her opinion was even worse than being carried off. 'Hades the Unseen One, stern and cruel.' unpitying, her mother had said of him.

"Hiruko, stop this thing now." The anger simmered beneath her skin as she tried to wrest the reins from him. They were getting closer to a wall of swirling fog and the nearer she got the more unsettled she felt, like icy spiders crawling down her back.

"I suppose I should mention that my name is Sasori."

That turned out to be the last straw. Between the fear and the confusion and now being told that one thing she thought she knew of him was a lie there was just one thing left to do.

Sakura punched him in the face.

An action that probably hurt her hand as much as it hurt Sasori, the force of it made his head turn and his eyes go wide. In retrospect assaulting the person holding the reins was not the best course of action, it only served to solidify her already firm belief that chariots were the worst things ever invented.

Sasori recovered from the blow in the blink of an eye, grabbing her by the wrist just in case she decided to go in for a second strike. Sakura would have none of that, still fighting for the reins that were held just out of reach.

"Sakura."

She mistook the warning in his tone to be about what she was doing and not what it was actually meant for-the turbulence he expected when crossing the border between two realms.

Breaching the fog rocked the craft violently enough to make Sakura lose her footing and go face first into one of the rails. There was a burst of pain that radiated all across the left side of her head before she slumped, distantly aware of hands cradling her face that were not her own as the world became a series of fragmented sensations.

There was the feeling of being carried, the warmth of another body chasing the cool away and the far off sound of murmuring voices. In one lucid moment she could hear her own voice, "This is why I hate those things." Sakura mumbled, face pressed to something that smelled of myrrh and ancient, dark roots. There was an answering hum that reverberated through her body pleasantly.

Sakura woke later, in a bed of soft sheets curled against something solid and blinking through the last haze of sleep. Looking up she realized the thing she'd been cuddled up against was Sasori, her head pillowed by one of his arms and the other thrown over her waist. "Hir-" No, that wasn't even his name. "You!" She corrected sharply, prepared to pinch, or better yet kick him if he didn't respond. So far he'd lied to her, kidnapped her and now he was crawling into a bed with her.

'The last thing I need is for those sorts of rumors to start about me.' Going from nigh obscurity to being the subject of lewd rumours was not the notoriety Sakura could or would appreciate.

"How's your head?"

"Fine, no thanks to you." The response was as terse as she could make it as she met his eyes-he looked far too self satisfied for someone who was in as much trouble as he was and hardly apologetic. "Let me up." The hand at her waist didn't hesitate at all to slide over her hip and along her thigh.

"I would but I'm sure you're aware of the problem now." The problem being that at some point during her slumber Sakura had thrown her leg over his hip. Thereby ensuring that the two of them were locked together, her abdomen pressed flush against places she had tenuous knowledge of at best.

Heat crawled up her neck and Sakura, as quickly as she was able moved to the furthest reaches of the bed, as if distance would make her embarrassment less. 'If that's the case I need to go to the opposite side of the earth right now.' but she'd settle for the attainable.

Sasori on the other hand was perfectly content to stay stretched out like some shameless feline, though he did heave a sigh at her scrambling away. "You never mentioned you were afraid of chariots." She'd complained about it vocally in her more lucid moments.

"Well you never mentioned that you were a no good kidnapper who lied about his name!" batting at the sheer cloth that hung around them hardly made her feel any better. " What is wrong with you?!" Better to not look at him, Sakura decided to focus on the room beyond the curtains-or what she could see of it like the braziers that burned with eerie blue fire and the high arched ceilings. The room was cavernous and she could only make out the larger details from where she was, none of which included an exit.

"I can think of a few things…" Like the distance between them. "But mostly that I yearned for your company." Sasori said it easily, but the words didn't seem to appease her. With the jerk of Sakura's head he was gifted with a rather surly glare.

"It's called visiting, it's a lot less…" Her hand wrangled the air as if it was keeping her from the right words. "Whatever that mess was."

Sasori snorted. "It was perfectly necessary. Your mother despises me." It'd been hard enough just tracking down her whereabouts, Tsunade's barrier had been designed to keep Sakura in and anyone undesignated out. According to Deidara right after the 100 year celebration she's essentially disappeared, an uncommon thing since she was seldom separate from her mother or the dark-haired one.

Even her childhood companion-Naruto, someone Tsunade generally liked, was being treated with cagey regard from the harvest goddess after offering his golden lyre as a bride price only to have every string snapped and the rest thrown into the clouds. 'Frankly that's something I would have enjoyed seeing.' Naruto was not actually the adept musician mortals made him out to be. 'Though I suppose I should be appreciative.' it was by that same idiot's vocal complaints that he knew where Sakura was and of the intense warding.

Apparently Naruto had been blown a few hundred kilometers away when he attempted to walk through.

The underworld which spanned the whole of the earth and deeper still with its caverns and tunnels like veins made a workaround possible for him, the title of The Unseen had many meanings though the moment Sakura breached the boundary Tsunade was likely alerted to something being amiss. 'It's far too late for her to stop what's already begun.' Even if Sakura was currently cross with him.

Sasori was of the mind that since permission would never be given by her mother then there was no point in asking and he had even less interest in being forgiven for something he wasn't sorry about. Tsunade would throw her fit but even Minato would not be so quick to act.

It was rare that a great enough number of them agreed on anything and he didn't need The Fates to tell him where allegiances would fall. Jiraiya would align with Tsunade. 'And Orochimaru will fall with whatever cause brings the most chaos.' Minato would desperately try to keep mortal lives from being ground up between competing interests. ' a foolish thing when they breed and die like gadflies.'

"She wouldn't if you hadn't been so inflexible." Sakura accused, having heard the story a million times; her mother begging and pleading for the soul of her lover and being denied. It was long before her time but the gods loved nothing more than gossiping and dredging up the past. Being as close to him as she was suddenly felt like a betrayal and so she threw aside the curtains to make her exit, stepping onto something soft like an animal hide before meeting marble that was cold enough to make her shudder.

Sakura wandered through the room aware of the gaze that followed and paused to admire the painted fresco of a tree that dominated one of the walls. Every leaf and bough in perfect detail down to the birds nestled within. Her admiration ended when Sasori came too close and she moved through an archway, surprised to find herself on a balcony.

"Is your next attempt at running away going to come in the form of throwing yourself over the edge?" Whether he was amused or exasperated remained questionable.

From her current vantage point Sakura could only assume that the palace of Hades had been built or carved into an outcropping that hung over the whole of the Underworld, at the very center of it or so it felt. From the view on high she saw what she assumed to be Styx, gleaming like a long thread of silver in the gloom and Phlegethon, bright and glowing red as it spilled ever down. There was a spot where the two seemed to meet and a great outpouring of steam rose and created clouds above. [1]

"If she told you the story then you must know she lost a bet. There is order in all things and something of value cannot be gained for nothing." When it came to feelings no one, not even the Gods ever wanted to hear about balance and order-and on a personal level his reticence to bend the rules had less to do with either of the two and more to do with his hatred of lessening his collection.

Sakura actually had not heard that there had been a bet involved and the mention of it had her head turning. "What?" It was well known to her and everyone else that Tsunade was a gambler and most often not a very good one.

"Oh, I suppose she wouldn't tell anyone about that part." Of course Sasori had already known the bet would be in his favor when he'd made it, knowing full well Tsunade would fail to meet the conditions but it was hardly his fault she'd been so full of doubt and mistrust. "All she had to do was hold his hand all the way out of the Underworld, she let go." A deal was a deal.

"And I'm supposed to trust a lying kidnapper's word?" Sakura's hands found their way to her hips as she turned her back to the view.

There was a shrug in response. "Every story has multiple sides."

"And I believe this is the part in our story where you return me."

It absolutely was not. "Where is your sense of adventure?" Sasori teased, leaning against the rail that kept anyone from taking what would presumably be a very long, unpleasant fall.  
Sakura's sense of adventure and innate curiosity were the entire reason why she was where she was but he'd planted a seed and could see it take root in her eyes. "How many Gods have seen the underworld for themselves?" And mortals who had seen the Underworld and come out of it simply did not exist. 'As of yet.' there was always the future.

'Well, when he says it like that…' It was easy for Sakura to forget that if she had stayed human her ultimate destination would have been where she stood now. 'Or somewhere here If it hadn't been for Mother…' It'd been so long since Sakura had ascended that she couldn't even recall what her mortal parents looked like having lived more of her life without them than with. 'Several times over to be exact but they're somewhere down here... Do they think of me at all?' Maybe it'd been so long for them they no longer remembered either.

Obito liked to tell the worst stories of the realm he frequently traveled to and that was where most of what Sakura knew about the kingdom of the dead came from. "They say that this place is awful."

A wry smirk told her most of what she needed to know about his opinion on the thoughts of others. "It can be horrible." Sasori admitted, pushing away from where he'd been leaning to grab Sakura's arm and quickly spun her to face the view once more. "But it's not without its beauty. As it is above, so it is below." his hand lingered, the world above wasn't so different, sometimes he thought it was even worse; always changing and impermanent. His sphere was of stability and inevitably. "And It would be amiss of me not to point out that the moment you go back you'll be locked down even tighter and for who knows how long."

'And that would all be his fault.' Sakura thought almost spitefully, but as it turned out she was not very good at holding a grudge against him. It made sense to her why he felt the need to give a false name when his own carried so much weight. 'It's probably impossible to be judged for himself.' She could forgive him that but being run down by a chariot was less understandable. 'Not only that but he clearly baited me.' Those wrought flowers had been a trap and likely been trampled into nothing. 'A shame because they were beautiful.'

...And he had done it all because he missed her. 'He used the word yearning-Fervently enough to go against mother's warding.' something she knew to be no easy feat. So yes, Sakura found herself to be quite flattered but she also recognized that Sasori had a very valid point. 'As soon as I go back It'll be the same as it was before.' if not worse and the more Sakura looked about the more curious she was. "And how do I know I'm not trading one cage for another?

"As clever as you ever were." The way that he said it almost sounded like cooing to her ears. "I'll vow it on Styx, As soon as you wish I will return you up above," A loophole was always a necessity in his opinion. "Circumstances permitting of course."

Sasori called her clever without mockery, Sakura was bright and she did seize upon the caveat with narrow eyes. "Circumstances permitting?"

"I might find myself tied up in some business or another, It may not be possible for me to drop it immediately." Sasori explained because while she was smart Sakura never really expected the worst out of others. It left her rather vulnerable to underhanded methods.

Several moments were spent debating amongst herself because while she didn't want anyone to worry Sakura also knew the moment they knew where she was it was very likely she;d be forced back without any sayd. 'If I'm going to be punished it might as well be for a legitimate reason.' her head nodded before words ever made their way forward. "I leave when I want to." She said, whether it was to reassure herself or remind him was left unconsidered.

"Of course." The hand that had yet to release her arm slid down over her wrist, reminding Sakura of the last time she'd seen him-When he'd held her hand much the same and she'd been feeling gutsy enough to kiss him. 'Well, it was barely that.' Ino said it was basically nothing, no different than kissing some relative though it didn't feel that way to her at all. She didn't get stomach flutters when Jiraiya hugged her. 'Ew.'

Something clicked and she found herself blinking at the foreign weight encircling her wrist. There was a golden scorpion with its tail tucked beneath its chelicerae locked around her limb, pinprick rubies in place of its median eyes and different colored gems where the laterals were meant to be. "Sasori…" it was the first time she'd used that name and it sounded rather threatening through gritted teeth.

Whatever warning lurked within her tone was ignored at the sound of his name from her lips. "Is it wrong to give a gift? A terribly useful one at that. As long as you wear it you have free reign to go where you please-with two exceptions," he denoted them with his fingers. "The first being Tartarus. As a dungeon I'm not sure why you would want to visit but if you do it will have to be by my escort. The second is the main entrance, where souls come through. Getting beyond it is impossible and those three take their job very seriously." As he demanded.

"You're going to let me travel alone?" Even up above she was expected to be in the company of others and the only time she'd broken that norm was the week she'd snuck around to see him and most of the time Sakura figured she had only gotten away with it because even the ones who were usually responsible and straight laced were drunk by the third day. 'Including Shizune.' The dark haired woman suffered a massive headache for several days after as she recalled.

"For the most part." Sasori tapped the back of the scorpion. "No one should bother you." But if they did he would know. "And you do have to be back around noon each day."

"How do you even tell time down here?" Her eyes turned towards the Underworld's Firmament, or what could be seen of it despite the steam clouds rolling and drifting against it, the parts that could be seen from the light that reflected from Phlegethon glittered like stars In a black void.

"The tide of Styx rises at dawn to meet Phlegethon and falls at sunset. We're an hour past daybreak now." The amount of steam would grow throughout the day and petter off as they approached night.

That meant she'd slept for a day after whacking her head on his stupid chariot. "What if I travel too far to make it back by night?" Sakura had not expected him to explain by guiding her line of sight with a hand at her cheek to face what she presumed to be north. Like a sword stabbing through the earth she could see the white spire even from their great distance.

"There are five more of those; White will bring you close to the Gates of Horn and Ivory, emerald to the Gate of Dawn. Obsidian to the Gate of Dusk and amethyst will take you to the Gate of Shades and ruby will return you here." Sasori ran a finger over each of the gems that lined the carapace of the bracelet, turning her wrist as he went. "All you have to do is focus your power into the corresponding one." It was simple enough. "Perhaps you would prefer a horse…"

Sakura snorted. "Not if they look anything like the ones you have. Do you want to give everyone who sees you riding about nightmares?" They'd been more twisted roots in the shape of skeletons and glowing sinew then anything, with smoking hooves and shrieking whinnies. "I think my feet will suffice just fine...and thank you for the gift." Though she wasn't sure where to even start her expedition

Sasori would have preferred to stay with her but he'd already taken one day off and a realm hardly functioned effectively with an absentee ruler. 'And time is something I have plenty of.' There was no such thing as getting ahead of his duties when they were endlessly multiplying but he did have a quota he liked to meet. "I'll send servants up to show you around the palace grounds and help you ready for the day." Hopefully they would convince her to wear sandals because there were many places with rough terrain beyond his residence.

"That's really not necessary, I can do things myself." Despite being a Goddess she had always considered herself more...earthy and self sufficient than most due to the constant traveling. Sometimes they stayed in a wealthy village or a temple but more often than not Sakura cleaned her own clothes and slept between Tsunade and Shizune.

Arguing over it would have been a waste of time, the servants would be around whether Sakura wanted them or not. "There is one more thing." there was just enough space beneath her skin and the bracelet that his thumb could caress her pulse.

They had been standing close together since he'd followed her out to the balcony but Sakura all at once felt hyper aware of the limited space between the two of them and the odd charge that sluiced over her skin. "uhuh?"

"It's been on my mind for a while," Sasori had wondered on occasion if she had forgotten as though it meant nothing. 'If that's the case she'll have to be shown otherwise.' His nose trailed the curve of her jaw and Sakura's thoughts just seemed to scatter about like seeds to be sown later as she struggled for words to say.

Only Sasori wasn't interested in words and that was abundantly clear when his lips slanted over hers, firm, insistent and completely different from the one she'd given him ages ago. As if to solidify that a hand slid over the back of her neck, in a way that made her gasp as heat washed down her spine. There was the swipe of something wet and hot against her own tongue as the hand that wasn't holding the rail in a death grip blindly gripped at her skirts for want of something to hold.

And then there was space and air to breath again when he pulled away, thumb brushing her parted lips. "Yes," Sasori sighed, taking in the stunned expression with pride. "As I thought, much better." There was another quick peck of his mouth against hers and then he was strolling off to his responsibilities. It was a part of his vindictive nature, upping the ante and walking away.

"W-what?" Sakura asked the empty space. She very much did not know what to do with that and found herself wishing Ino were around. "He can't just do things like that!" it wasn't wholesome or appropriate at all. ' Alright, so none of this is.' it was bad enough she was basically a runaway for the moment but there were limits and she wasn't willing to throw all propriety out the window just because something felt nice. 'I mean just what does he think we even are?'

That led Sakura to asking herself what she thought they were, pacing back and forth in sharp turns.'I don't feel like that when Naruto or Sasuke are nearby.' so maybe they weren't friends but if they weren't that then she was at a loss as to what Sasori should be referred to as. She lost track of how many times she'd turned about but around the 30th she realized she wasn't alone.

"Greetings." Two pairs of eyes as black as pitch stared up at her and Sakura was reminded of the seafaring creatures that liked to lay out on the sun warmed sand of beaches. The duo were no bigger than children and dressed in deep blue cloth.

"That one is Skia."

"And that one is Selao."

"We're sisters."

They spoke in tandem even pointing at one another as they introduced themselves. There was hardly a difference between the two of them with skin as white as bone and hair like ashes from the hearth. The only distinction between them was the cut and length of their hair. Skia's was cut short in the back while Selao's was left long and double braided.

"Hello." Sakura had never been particularly good with servants and attendants-she had a hard time with comporting herself as above humans for that matter. 'I didn't get where I am by merit, I haven't done anything spectacular. It was just by fate's design that this is my lot.' and since that was the case she never felt above anyone.

'Meanwhile just about everyone else I know is smiting this or that person.' of course sometimes mortals thought they were being targeted when it was just an unfortunate turn of events. "I'm…" Kore, Persephone or the name closest to her heart, the one given at her birth. The problem with having so many names was that sometimes she floundered with how to introduce herself.

Selao's mischievous grin revealed the tiny sharp teeth that laid within her mouth, liquid black eyes gleaming. "We know." her hands were deathly cool when they grasped Sakura's own. "Come along." she urged, pulling the goddess along with surprising strength for someone so small.

Skia followed behind with a more tame smile than her sister's at Sakura's befuddled expression. Previously Sakura had only gone from the bed to the balcony, but beyond that there were three more attached rooms; a sitting area with couches and cushions arranged about a low table laden with food and drink.

A distant recollection washed over her, something Obito had once muttered about avoiding anything grown from Hades. The exact words were hard for her to recollect but to ere on the side of caution she avoided touching any of it even when offered. 'I don't need it.' Not yet at least, lack of food would not kill her though too long and things might become unpleasant.

Neither of the sisters pushed the subject as they proceeded on to the next room, which by comparison was rather sparse. A multitude of stacked boxes and several larger chests cloistered against a wall and a mirror. What truly drew her attention were the wrought flowers spilling out of a vase. They were no different than the ones she'd happened upon up above.

"Our Lord has said that this room is yours to do with as you please." Selao intoned, plucking as the sash that helped give Sakura's dress some form and color. "You look as though you've crawled out of a grave." She was speaking mostly to the dirt that had become embedded in the once pristine cloth during her failed escape. 'But her hair is not much better.' Whatever flowers had once been there were crushed. How shocking it was that Hades, who disliked mess had left her as such and even slept beside her. 'But then what of this isn't unlike him?' He had always been cold and austere but with his gifts and his plans it seemed he'd found an exception.

"Perhaps a bath?" Skia was already working a comb through the pink strands after deftly kicking Sakura's ankle watching her fall into a seat with amusement.

"If I'm going to be wandering around all day I don't see a point."

"Before bed then." The two spoke at once before Selao threw open one of the chests to procure clothing for the day. They were exceedingly quick in their work, a fact that they took great pride in even when Sakura squawked indignantly about being undressed by cold hands and moved about like a doll.

Restored to some measure of splendor Sakura thought she would be given some reprieve but then two began to debate over accessories, offering up box after box as they debated the merits of each.

"Does he make a habit of this?" Sakura questioned by the fifth box, completely overwhelmed. Each piece she saw was beautiful but the question of why taunted her. 'I mean who has riches just piled up in a back room for some visitor to make use of?' Trinkets for women to be specific.

In the end they decided on a chain of golden leaves for her waist, recognizing that their charge's patience was reaching a limit. "What do you mean?" Skia turned from fetching some footwear, the wrinkling of her mistress's nose told her that her pursuit on that front had been pointless.

"Of bringing women here…" maybe the items were on loan and had been owned by someone else at one point. The thought suddenly made her itch to be rid of it all.

The two of them shared a giggle. "No." And they left it at that.

"The elm where false dreams cling is quite a sight." Skia supposed she should offer a bit of guiding advice when it came to sight seeing.

"I think Lethe is better."

"You say that because you like to push the shades into it when they take too long." Selao didn't deny the accusation and by the flashing of her maw Sakura believed it to be true.

"If I wanted to find someone how would I do it?" Sakura questioned, her thoughts from earlier returning now that she'd resolved herself to deal with Sasori and his...everything later. It was pointless and sentimental of her to be wondering about people she could barely recall and some dark part of her questioned if it would hurt Tsunade to know if it-she didn't wish for that. 'But still…'

Selao paused her endeavor of restacking the carved boxes in their proper order "Depends on who you are looking for...but Hekate can find anything! She's been here forever…" It was said that she had taught Hades all the old ways before humans had even walked the earth, before he had been king. "She resides between Mnemosyne and Acheron." Closest to the Gate of Dawn but not too far from the Gate of Shades.

Sasori had told her which spire corresponded to each stone, but she wasn't sure of the rivers beyond Styx and the flaming one. 'Acheron is where Charon ferries the dead.' Her thumb found its way to the amethyst as she thought. "And that means its closest to the shades.' Drawing from the well of power that lurked in intangible places Sakura focused it into her hand and through the stone, surprising her attendants when they blinked and she was completely gone.

"We should have mentioned that Hekate attended judgements…"

* * *

[1] Essentially the meeting of Styx and Phelgethon is what creates weather in the underworld. (in this universe)

The underworld has five rivers, the most prominent being Styx, the River of Hatred. It's the river the gods swear upon, the river that could make humans invulnerable like Achilles. Phlegethon is the river of Fire and Blood that pours into Tartarus. Acheron-The river of Pain is the one that Charon ferries the dead across to be judged. Lethe is the river in which human souls wash or drink from to forget their living lives and be reincarnated but there is a body of water called Mnemosyne which could restore memory and grant omniscience. The final river was Cocytus, the river of Lamentation which fed into Acheron. The thing about "places" in greek mythos is that they were often also Gods/Godesses.

Greek Mythos is weird, more on that later.

Skia-A shadow, a reflection  
Selao- A Shine.

They do not exist in any mythology, but the closest you can come to them would be Lampades, Underworld Nymphs. I picture them as having teeth like a microbat and sometimes they chitter at one another in a language no one else really understands and they're just rather eerie.

It's lateeee and I'm sorry. I had a major cold and then I had to go panic buy supplies for elderly relatives. Funny how I get over being sick just as the world begins to descend into chaos. My place is well stocked with toilet paper just sayin.

I advise everyone to NOT do what people did during the bubonic plague and start panicking, dragging the pestilence all over the place in a vain attempt to avoid catching it. Wash your hands, do your due diligence but above all please remain calm.

Honestly this stupid chapter was just not being cooperative so I had to beat it with a stick. Actually a good portion of my time was spent trying to figure out underworld geography, how I wanted it to look in my head and all that good stuff.

General rule is that the longer it takes me to release something the harder I am grappling with it…  
Or I died.

Looking at it now I'm pretty sure this thing will end up being longer than 5 chapters. I guess it depends on how much stuff I decide to bring up while writing. Can you guess who is who in the underworld? You might be surprised at who shows up where. Sakura is a very naive dunce but it's mostly not her fault and we all love her anyways.

Most of the "Fun" stuff that happens in Greek mythology comes AFTER Persephone and Hades are married. The Iliad for instance, or Sisyphus getting rekt and certainly Orpheus and Eurydice plus that whole two idiots sneak into the Underworld and try to steal the person it's King values most.  
**_  
_**Did some minor editing on the last chapter because when rereading I noticed stupid mistakes. I'm hoping to have either a chapter of Turning Crimson or Stupid with Love out before/on Sakura's Birthday. -being ambitious-

If you see any glaring mistakes this chapter post it so I can feel less stupid when I inevitably reread over my own writing to remind myself how awful I am. That being said there seems to be an issue with PM notifications, so if you're wondering why you haven't gotten a response for someone it might just be that you DID and is broke.


End file.
